Sounding Off on Soccer with John Krysinsky

As the 2026 college soccer season kicks off, Pittsburgh Soccer Now's John Krysinsky sits down with Pitt Men's Soccer Head Coach Jay Vidovich and senior midfielder Logan Oliver.

Coach Vidovich reflects on his journey at Pitt, setting the standard for the program, and bringing in former players like Bryce Cregan, Robby Dambrot, and Will Bagrou to his coaching staff to reinforce program culture. Logan Oliver shares his path from the Philadelphia Union Academy to Indiana and ultimately Pitt, detailing what makes Coach Vidovich's tactical identity unique and how this year's squad is locked in for a deep postseason...

College soccer is filled with world-class athletic talent, compelling storylines, and high-stakes conference battles—yet traditional media coverage frequently ignores the college game until NCAA Tournament's selection Sunday -- and even then -- coverage can be limited.

That void is the driving motivation behind our newest weekly feature: College Soccer Central with John Krysinsky.

Drawing on background as a long-time soccer journalist across numerous outlets and ventures including the past eight years with Pittsburgh Soccer Now, combined with his direct experience on the touchline as former head coach at Point Park University, this sh...

Putting a Bow on World Cup 2026 with USBWA Hall of Famer Mike DeCourcy

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is in the books, and on this final post-mortem episode, John Krysinsky brings back Mike DeCourcy (The Sporting News) -- who was there -- to break down Spain’s 1-0 extra-time victory over Argentina at MetLife (NY/NJ) Stadium. 

More than just a World Cup recap, this episode celebrates a monumental milestone: Lat Sunday's final was Mike’s last official event as a full-time sports writer and columnist for The Sporting News after 37 years of Hall of Fame journ...

Lead broadcast analyst Devon Kerr rejoins John Krysinsky for an unfiltered, no-holds-barred edition of Sounding Off on Soccer.

Devon was in the booth at FNB Stadium calling the Hounds' national broadcast victory over Louisville City FC. 

In this episode, he gives his candid thoughts on Trevor Amann’s historic 3-minute, 27-second hat trick, assesses the Riverhounds' mid-season progress under Rob Vincent, and breaks down why the USL Championship playoff race is completely wide open.

In this episode:

Steel City FC Men's First Team Head Coach Dan Brower joins John Krysinsky on Sounding Off on Soccer to reflect on a remarkable era for the club as he prepares to step down from the touchline.

Under Brower's guidance, Steel City FC evolved from its grassroots academy roots into a national USL League Two power—culminating in a 2026 Great Forest Division Title, an undefeated regular season, and the club’s first-ever USL2 postseason victory last week.  

In this episode, John and Dan discuss: 

⚽️ The decision to step down and the evolution of Steel City FC's...

Before boarding the bus to Flint, Michigan, for the USL League Two Central Conference Playoffs, Steel City FC standouts Ryan Kopay and Jaxon Ervin sat down with Pittsburgh Soccer Now's John Krysinsky.

The Great Forest Division champions capped off a historic, undefeated regular season (conceding only three goals across 12 matches!) and are now slated for a Round of 32 clash against Northern Indiana FC at Atwood Stadium on Friday, July 17 at 4:00 PM ET.

In this episode, Jaxon and Ryan dive deep into their local roots—having grown up playing youth soccer together with Beadling SC in We...

"They found the right channels, but against Belgium, they had an answer for everything. The U.S. had to work a little bit harder, and that's when elite players step up."

The tournament run is over. Host John Krysinsky welcomes The Sporting News writer and pod regular Mike DeCourcy to process the heavy reaction surrounding the U.S. Men's National Team’s 4-1 elimination from the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Key Topics Covered:

The U.S. Men’s National Team has advanced to the World Cup Round of 16 for the first time since 2002 after a wild, gritty 2-0 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina in Santa Clara. Host John Krysinsky is joined by senior writer for The Sporting News, Mike DeCourcy, to break down a chaotic night in the Bay Area and look ahead to a massive knockout clash with Belgium.

John and Mike tackle the fallout from Folarin Balogun's highly controversial 64th-minute red card and how Pochettino's "no-panic" culture kept the 10-man squad structurally flawless. Plus, they dive into the ta...

The Sporting News legend Mike DeCourcy joins John Krysinsky to recap the group stage fallout and map out the road ahead for Wednesday’s massive USMNT vs. Bosnia knockout clash. Pulling back the curtain on the press room, Mike breaks down how Pochettino is navigating the American media and why tournament depth matters.

Later in the show, John shifts gears to the local sports landscape. Fifty years after the Pittsburgh Triangles won a championship, why is Pittsburgh still sitting on its hands regarding elite women's professional sports? John delivers a passionate closing argument on the explosive growth of...

Riverhounds Media Relations Director Matt Grubba, born in Sydney, Australia but raised in the U.S., joins John Krysinsky to preview the highly anticipated USMNT vs. Australia World Cup match and shares an incredible inside look at the Hounds' historic USL Championship win in Tulsa.

Full Show Notes:

Joining the show today is longtime Pittsburgh soccer journalist and current Riverhounds Director of Media Relations, Matt Grubba!

John and Matt have shared press boxes since the dawn of the F.N.B. Stadium era. In this episode, they look back at how much the...

A truly historic week across the global and local sporting landscape brings a powerhouse edition of Sounding Off on Soccer!

We kick things off right from the press box in Los Angeles as host John Krysinsky welcomes back legendary sports journalist Mike DeCourcy of The Sporting News. Fresh off covering the U.S. Men’s National Team’s commanding performance, Mike takes us inside the electric atmosphere of the World Cup on home soil. We dive deep into a vintage tactical display the likes of which we’ve never quite seen from the U.S. Men on this s...

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is just weeks away, and Mauricio Pochettino has officially set the roster for the USMNT.

The 26-man squad features massive tactical gambles, headline-grabbing snubs, and a heavy reliance on a select few stars to carry the load on home soil.

On this episode of Sounding Off on Soccer, Pittsburgh Soccer Now Managing Editor John Krysinsky sits down with veteran sports journalist and Pittsburgh's own Mike DeCourcy of The Sporting News.

Instead of a standard Q&A, John puts Mike on the hot seat at the start in a "Buy...

Summer soccer in Western Pennsylvania is officially in full swing, and this week the spotlight shines directly on the women’s pre-professional landscape.

Ahead of their anticipated USL W League season opener this Friday night, Pittsburgh Soccer Now sat down with two foundational pillars of the Steel City FC Women squad: defensive anchor Emily Graeca and veteran goalkeeper Payton O'Malley.

The duo represents a massive chunk of the veteran leadership driving Head Coach Tom Ovenden's roster this summer. Graeca, a standout defender at James Madison University and a DuBois area native, alongside O'Malley, the Chartiers Va...

The partnership between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Borussia Dortmund moved from the front office to the pitch this week.

On Wednesday, the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex hosted youth athletes for the BVB International Academy North America tryouts—a landmark moment for the collaboration announced last year.

On the latest episode of Sounding Off on Soccer, Pittsburgh Soccer Now's caught up with BVB’s Dru Wright (Chief Football Officer - BVB International Academy North America) and and the Steelers’ Reagan Berube (Sr Director Content and International Development) to discuss the tangible impact of this global bridge.

F...

In the latest episode of Sounding Off on Soccer, host John Krysinsky is joined by Riverhounds and Riveters President Jeff Garner for an in-depth discussion on the rapidly evolving landscape of professional soccer in Pittsburgh.

From landmark corporate partnerships to the ambitious vision for F.N.B. Stadium, Garner pulls back the curtain on the business decisions driving the club's growth both on and off the pitch.

In This Episode, We Discuss:

Pittsburgh native Nicky Kolarac, who has played for three different teams in the US Open Cup: Michigan Bucks, Pittsburgh Riverhounds and Steel City FC, joined John Krysinsky on Sounding Off on Soccer Podcast to discuss the historic match between the Riverhounds and Steel City.  

The match between the Riverhounds and Steel City (Tuesday, March 17 -- 7 p.m. at Highmark Stadium) will be the first time two teams from the Pittsburgh area will face off against each other in the proper US Open Cup tournament since 1957 -- a span of nearly seven decades and 69 years!

John a...

On the newest episode of Sounding Off on Soccer Podcast, Pittsburgh Soccer Now's John Krysinsky is joined by Steel City FC's Nick Graeca and Grant McIntosh to discuss their upcoming Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup match vs the Riverhounds

Among the topics discussed included: 

Pittsburgh Soccer Now's John Krysinsky and Mark Goodman are back and ready on a new Episode of Sounding Off on Soccer to discuss the new season as the Riverhounds get set to defend its USL Championship title. 

However, will the season start on time?  

The USLPA and USL Headquarters continue to negoiate in good faith, but with less than 48 hours before kickoff, there is still no new Collective Bargaining Agreement between the players and the league. 

 John and Mark share their thoughts on the 11th Hour negoiations, then roll up their sleeves to disc...

On Friday, Steel City FC and the Riverhounds announced that its historic US Open Cup match has been moved to Highmark Stadium -- on March 17, at 7 p.m.  
  

This seemed like a great opportunity to bring back and check in with Tom Ovenden and Dan Brower, Steel City FC's owner/president and the men's first team Head Coach to discuss the match and the club's efforts to partner with the Riverhounds in hosting the Open Cup match.   

Robbie Mertz is back for another season with his hometown club, the Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC.

This time he comes back to the club, with a new contract, as a champion, postseason hero and even more determined to contribute in contributing to the Riverhounds' standard of success that has been part of his tenures with the team.

As the Hounds kick off the preseason, Mertz joins John Krysinsky on the Sounding Off on Soccer Podcast for a revealing and compelling in-depth interview.  

Among the topics John and Robbie discuss included:

Randy Waldrum has earned his spot in coaching history in the United States of America.

In January, the United Soccer Coaches Annual Convention in Philadelphia, the organization honored Waldrum, along with Craig Ewing, Al Miller and Steve Sampson, as part of its 2026 Hall of Fame Class.

The U.S. Soccer coaching icon, who helped build successful women's college soccer programs at every stop, including at University of Pittsburgh, sat down with John Krysinsky for a special interview segment for Sounding Off on Soccer Podcast.

In this segment, Randy shares more on recieving on...

Stefan Lundberg has done it all on the Pittsburgh soccer landscape, but he's still not done yet.

The former WPIAL and club soccer standout, who went on to a four-year career at Duquesne University, played three seasons with the Pittsburgh Riverhounds, where he (no pun intended) was part of the team that bridged the gap playing before scarce crowds at Chartiers Valley to the inagural season at Highmark Stadium. 

Lundberg has stayed involved with the game with local amateur clubs including Tartan Devils Oak Avalon of Greater Pittsburgh Soccer League and is now one of t...

In what was our first-ever in-person, on location edition of Sounding Off on Soccer Podcast, at Shiloh Plate & Pour (on Mt. Washington), one of the pillars of the Riverhounds 2025 championship squad, the team's captain and midfielder, Danny Griffin joined John Krysinsky to share his thoughts, in his first extended interview session, a few weeks after the team delivered the franchise's first-ever League Title to Pittsburgh.

If there was one overriding theme in this conversation with Griffin, it was about how the team banded together and remained a close-knit group regardless of what ever adversity it faced, eventually...

Before the Riverhounds kickoff against FC Tulsa in the club's first-ever appearance in the USL Championship Final -- the Sounding Off on Soccer podcast is back with a special pregame edition.

Joining PSN's John Krysinsky includes Matthew Baldwin, who has covered the Riverhounds for the past two-and-half seasons with multiple outlets including previously with Pittsburgh Soccer Now and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Keith Barnes.

With the Riverhounds set to play in the USL Championship Final at Tulsa on Saturday, we continue our series of daily Sounding Off on Soccer Podcast episodes.

Today, John Krysinsky caught up with Riverhounds' All-USL Championship First Team defender Sean Suber as the third-year pro

The Pittsburgh Riverhounds are USL Championship's Eastern Conference champions and will now be facing FC Tulsa in the League Final.  Pittsburgh Soccer Now's John Krysinsky is joined by fellow PSN contributors Mark 'Soccer Rabbi' Goodman and Matt Popchock who were all on hand at Highmark Stadium for Riverhounds 1-0 ECF triumph over Rhode Island, sharing their experiences from a memorable night in Pittsburgh soccer history and discuss the team's chances in the League Final to be played on Saturday at Noon.  

On the latest episode of Sounding Off on Soccer Podcast, Pittsburgh Soccer Now's John Krysinsky discusses the Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC one key missing ingredient as they get set to host Rhode Island FC in the USL Championship's Eastern Conference Final on Saturday. 

Then, John is joined by Steel City FC's Nolan Hutter, who's been helping lead Pittsburgh's USL League Two makeshift squad through 2026 US Open Cup Qualifying:

Among the topics John and Nolan discussed include: 

In what has become a tradition of sorts, PSN's John Krysinsky is joined by a member of the broadcast team for a Riverhounds' upcoming playoff match -- as USL Championship play-by-play announcer Joe Malfa jumps on Sounding Off on Soccer Podcast to discuss Saturday's USL Championship Eastern Conference Quarterfinal Round match at Highmark Stadium.

Together, John and Joe breakdown the match-up and discuss the many, many storylines for the first Hounds home playoff match since 2023 and only the second this decade.  

It's been a while, but we're back with a new episode of Sounding Off on Soccer as Pittsburgh Soccer Now's John Krysinsky shares his thoughts on the unfortunate incident at the end of last Saturday's Riverhounds-Hartford match, then also brings on Pitt Men's Soccer broadcast analyst and former LaRoche University boys head soccer coach, David Day, to discuss Pitt men's soccer team.  

Among the topics discussed with Day include: 

Heading into his third year as Head Coach of Robert Morris men’s soccer, Jonathan Potter leads a program coming off one of the most impressive campaigns in program history which included winning the Horizon League championship and a berth in the NCAA Men’s Division I tournament.

“That was an exciting. cool thing that provided great moments. Hopefully, we can create some more good memories this fall,” Potter told Pittsburgh Soccer Now early this week as his team is preparing for Thursday’s season opener at Mercyhurst.

Talk about a tough act to follow.

Liste...

One of our favorite guests of the Sounding Off on Soccer Podcast, Devon Kerr, returns to join John Krysinsky for an enlightening discussion with most of the interview segment talking about the Riverhounds, and on the tail end, some preseason thoughts on College Soccer and Pitt men's soccer team.  

Among the topics Devin breaks down include: 

More than halfway through his seventh season as a professional soccer player, spending nearly all of his career playing for his hometown club, Upper St Clair native Robbie Mertz is poised to become the Riverhounds all-time appearances leader for a player from the Pittsburgh region with his next appearance.  Mertz, who is also tied for the team lead in goals and is the team's runaway leader in chances created, is currently tied with club Hall of Famer, Gary DePalma (1999-2004) for the all-time appearances.  With 157 matches played for the Hounds, Mertz is tied with DePalma for fifth in club hi...

It's been a while, but Mike Decourcy, fresh off covering FIFA Club World Cup at Met Life Stadium earlier in the week, joins John Krysinsky on a new episode of Sounding Off on Soccer Podcast.

With the FIFA World Cup in the US, Canada and Mexico less than one year away, Mike and John discuss the state of USMNT along with more on FIFA's Club World Cup. 

Then shifting gears, they also tackle another column that Mike wrote about this week, which is one of the greatest debates that extends to all sports fans, Michael J...

In May, Pitt women's soccer program announced an official change in leadership, with Randy Waldrum stepping into a new role as Technical Director, while Ben Waldrum is taking over as the team's Head Coach.

For the first time since the transition took place, Pittsburgh Soccer Now's John Krysinsky had a chance to visit Pitt's Peterson Sports Complex and sit down with the father and son duo who have led Pitt women's soccer to its most successful era and has reached its greatest heights since they arrived in 2018.

In this exclusive, in-depth interview, among the topics...

In May, Pitt women's soccer program announced an official change in leadership, with Randy Waldrum stepping into a new role as Technical Director, while Ben Waldrum is taking over as the team's Head Coach.

For the first time since the transition took place, Pittsburgh Soccer Now's John Krysinsky had a chance to visit Pitt's Peterson Sports Complex and sit down with the father and son duo who have led Pitt women's soccer to its most successful era and has reached its greatest heights since they arrived in 2018.

In this exclusive, in-depth interview, among the topics...

In the club's first season competing in USL League Two, Steel City FC's men's team earned yet another Division Title with one match remaining, following a 2-1 defeat of Toledo Villa FC, on Sunday at Founders Field.

Two key members of the squad, Nathan Prex (Seneca Valley HS/Lebanon Valley) and Josh Lane (Leicester, England/Robert Morris), sat down for an interview on the latest episode of Sounding Off on Soccer Podcast with Pittsburgh Soccer Now's John Krysinsky.

Prex, a former standout with Seneca Valley who has excelled at Lebanon Valley College (30 goals in his...

On the eve of the Pittsburgh Riveters SC first-ever postseason appearance, the squad's Head Coach, Scott Gibson sat down with Pittsburgh Soccer Now's John Krysinsky for an insightful interview session. 

Having been there to help foster the start and as a constant in the incremental growth and ascension of the Riverhounds Development Academy, Gibson was tabbed to take the role as the first-ever coach of W League League squad that would play at Highmark Stadium and generate a new level of excitement for women's soccer. 

Among topics Gibson discusses includes: 

Three Pittsburgh natives, Jack Shearer, Josh DiMatteo and Grant Glorioso are bringing professional indoor soccer back to the Steel City.

On the latest episode of Sounding Off on Soccer Podcast, Shearer, DiMatteo and Glorioso join Pittsburgh Soccer Now's John Krysinsky to share more details about the new Major League Indoor Soccer franchise: Bridge City FC.    

After years of playing Division I collegiate and professional indoor soccer in the Major Arena Soccer League (MASL), with teams like the Baltimore Blast and Harrisburg Heat, the trio is launching a new franchise, Bridge City FC, in the Major Lea...

When the Pittsburgh Riveters SC and Steel City FC face off for the second time this month on Friday night at Highmark Stadium (7 p.m. kickoff) in a high-stakes match with USL W League Great Forest Division top spot in the balance, both clubs will be showcasing rosters that will include more than four dozen players from the Greater Pittsburgh region.

Focusing on this  match-up, many players on both rosters are from in and around the Greater Pittsburgh area.  Many of the players on both sides know each other very well.  There are many current college teammates, for...

Steel City FC women's first team is preparing for the final weekend of the regular season in the club's first-go around in the USL W League.

Head Coach Tom Ovenden jumps on with Pittsburgh Soccer Now's John Krysinsky to talk about the season to this point, this Friday's high-stakes match-up vs Riveters at Highmark Stadium as both teams are vying for Great Forest Division top spot and more.